Hand Layup
First, the carbon fiber/honeycomb/epoxy panels were laid up by hand and coated in epoxy resin. The panels were then vacuum sealed and allowed to fully cure
Machining
Once the panels were created, they all needed to be machined into pieces. A ban saw and router were the two most used machines to cut out the parts needed. Other machines used consisted of a drill press and belt sander.
Bonding
After the components were machined, they needed to be bonded together. Using J-B Weld that is meant for composite-to-composite bonding, the bow arms, rails and various other pieces were bonded together.
Final Assembly
Once everything cured and was fully bonded, the Clay Pigeon Pitcher was ready to be assembled. After the initial assembly was complete, finishing touches were done to make the Clay Pigeon Pitcher working the best it can.
Tooling Used
The only tooling needed was to create the bow arms of the assembly. As shown on the left, the tool was made from aluminum welded together to form a male tool. The fiberglass pre-preg (already coated and partially cured resin soaked fiberglass) was than placed on top of the tool and put into an autoclave to fully cure into the shape of a bow arm.
